


the room’s hush hush (and now is our moment)

by AceMoppet



Series: lovers dance when they’re feelin’ in love [1]
Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Angst, Bit of a dumbass!Yuuri, Fluff, Gay shenanigans, Genderfluid Katsuki Yuuri, Katsuki Sibling Shenanigans, Miscommunication, Other, Shy!Victor, Vicchan Lives, chris is so done
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-10
Updated: 2019-02-23
Packaged: 2019-08-21 19:03:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 13
Words: 17,074
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16582268
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AceMoppet/pseuds/AceMoppet
Summary: In another universe, there is a Victor who is suave around his crush. Who can talk casually to them, can smoothly ask them on a date, can easily seduce them.In another universe, there is a Victor who isn’t a mess.This is not that universe.Or, the AU in which Victor is extremely shy. Sochi still happens, only this time with less doggo deaths and more rom com shenanigans.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hey y’all, Ace here! So this little bunny just hopped into my head one day, and instead of leaving, burrowed down and begged to be written. So I did! 
> 
> Please note that the Victor in this au is really, really shy; if that’s not your cup of tea, this might not be the fic for you.
> 
> As always, feel free to leave a comment or kudos if you liked it!

In another universe, there is a Victor who is suave around his crush. Who can talk casually to them, can smoothly ask them on a date, can easily seduce them. 

In another universe, there is a Victor who isn’t a mess.

This is not that universe.

“Cover me,” he hisses to Chris as he attempts to hide behind a large potted plant, “Katsuki’s coming on our six!”

Chris sighs, but he moves to hide Victor behind him. “You know that your hair is probably sticking out, right?”

“Shhhh!” The plastic leaves rustle loudly as Victor wedges himself into the corner. “They’re coming!”

Chris sighs again and mutters under his breath, “They could be coming with you if you had a handful of more balls.”

Victor tries very hard to suppress the indignant squeal that’s trying to come out of his mouth. For the most part, he succeeds, turning it into a small squeak.

A squeak that Katsuki Yuuri, Japan’s Ace of both skating and breaking gay hearts, unfortunately overhears. They squint in their direction. They’re not wearing their glasses. On one hand, that’s great; they probably won’t see Victor! On the other hand, Victor is becoming exponentially gayer by the second; if this continues for too long, he might actually burst!

And then Victor dies, because Katsuki starts heading over to their corner, where Victor is frantically trying to duck behind the top of the plant.

“Hey Chris!” They greet, still squinting, “You are Chris, right?”

“Yuuri,” Chris purrs, “Mon ami, can’t you recognize me?”

Katsuki laughs, and God help Victor because they blush so beautifully. A hand comes up to scratch at their cheek, a bashful smile on their face. “Ah well, I uh, don’t exactly have my glasses on me right now…”

“Mm yes I can see that!” Chris says, clearly amused. “So how are yo-“

“Ah, sorry, but uh, did you hear a squeak here earlier? I’m looking for my dog’s ball, and I was just wondering…”

Victor sees Chris blink and bite his cheek. “No,” he lies, trying not to laugh, “I didn’t hear anything.”

“Ah ok.” Katsuki looks dejected, and Victor wants nothing more than to hug them. Maybe feed them some blini. Would Katsuki even like blini? Victor gets so lost in his daydreams of feeding Katsuki Yuuri some homemade blini that he almost misses their next question.

“Could I uh, could I maybe take a peek behind you though? Vicchan and I came by this place earlier and he might have dropped it…”

Oh shit.

Chris shifts to cover more of Victor. “You know, I really don’t think there’s anything behind this tree-“

“Please?” Katsuki asks, and Victor is wonderfully screwed, because they brought out the puppy eyes. No grown person should be that cute in Victor’s book, and it figures that the exception to that rule is none other than Katsuki Fucking Yuuri. Fuck Victor’s life.

Fuck Chris too, because with an apologetic glance at Victor, he steps to the side and allows Katsuki to pass. 

They kneel down and search for the lost toy, hands spread out in front of them, groping blindly. This close, Victor can see the way their leg muscles bunch up and move, and he can definitely see the Glorious Butt™️. If Victor dies today, he will have died a gay man, both in temperament and in sexuality.

Just when he thinks he’s going to get away with it, Katsuki’s hand bumps against his sneaker.

“Oh?” They mutter, tugging on it, “What’s thi-“ 

They tug so hard that Victor, who was already in a precarious position before, stumbles and almost falls on top of Katsuki.

“Agh!” He screams, trying to grab onto the wall to find his balance.

Katsuki looks up at him, eyes squinting before they finally widen and they blush. This close, Victor can see how the flush spills over their face like pretty pink paint, and he can feel his own face try to imitate it. “I- um- uh-“

Katsuki blinks: once, twice. “V-Victor?”

Victor swallows. Oh dear. “Katsuki.” There, he said it, without stuttering even once! Take that universe!

“W-What are you doing here?”

Fuck. “Well-“

“He was trying to hide from the paparazzi.” Katsuki turns to Chris, missing Victor’s long sigh of relief. 

“The paparazzi?” they echo, head tilting so gracefully that Victor wants to weep. 

“Mhm.” Chris nods, walking over to help them up. “They were chasing him earlier, so he decided to hide.”

Katsuki blinks. “But then why was he hiding behind a plant?”

Chris chuckles. “That’s a good question,” his eyes shift over to Victor’s, who’s looking at him in horror, “Victor?”

They both turn to Victor, who’s trying his best to blend in with very green and brown plant. It doesn’t work, considering the fact that he has very silver hair and is wearing a very red jacket.

“I uh,” he licks his lips, mumbling, “couldn’t think of another place to hide…”

Katsuki blinks again. They seem to do that a lot when they get confused; at least, Victor thinks they’re just confused - he’d really hate it if it turns out that Katsuki only blinks like that to emphasize just how stupid they find someone. “Ok,” they say slowly, “Well, I have to go find my toy- I-I mean, my dog’s toy, so uh, see you tomorrow!”

And then they march off. What was that old saying? I hate to watch you go…

“... I love to watch Yuuri leave.”

Victor jumps back from where Chris is leaning on his shoulder. “Chris,” he hisses, “You have a boyfriend.”

“My boyfriend would say the same thing,” Chris counters smoothly, “But enough about that. Are you alright?”

And this is why Chris is his friend. For all that Chris gives him shit, he’s also smart enough to tell when enough is enough, and Victor is definitely nearing that threshold. Victor nods though. “I should be fine if I don’t run into them again,” he says, more confident that he feels.

Chris hums. “You’re not joining us for dinner then?”

“What- oh. Oh.” Victor bites his lip. On one hand, it would be really rude for him not to show up; on the other, he might not be able to take much more if he goes to dinner with Katsuki right across from him. “I don’t know.”

Chris nods and pats his back. “Ok, think on it. You can let me know after practice ends today.”

“Thank you Chris,” Victor says, clasping Chris’s shoulder. He has such a good friend.

“And don’t worry so much Romeo,” Chris calls over his shoulder as he walks to the ice, “that way lies hair loss and stress!”

He takes it back. Chris is the absolute worst.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Enter Mari and Vicchan. Also, Victor meets his littlest fan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow! I’m glad y’all seem to like this story! Thanks guys!
> 
> Also, I think I’ve figured out a good posting schedule; I’ll be posting a chapter every Saturday around this time so stay tuned for more!
> 
> And now,,, without further ado,,,, Vicchan.

Yuuri is currently undergoing what may or may not be the weirdest day of their life.

 

First, Mari arrived with Vicchan the day before. After not seeing both of them for almost five years, they collapsed into Mari’s arms and sobbed like a baby, with Mari awkwardly patting their back and Vicchan frantically licking their tears away.

 

Then, they woke up early this morning to Vicchan yapping at their ear. Five years away has made them forget how much of a morning dog Vicchan is. They got up, groaning, and went to play ball with Vicchan in the lobby, since it was too cold for Vicchan to go outside.

 

(Secretly, it’s because it was too cold for Yuuri to go outside, but they’ll take that secret to the grave.)

 

Then, after realizing that they’ve lost Vicchan’s favorite toy somewhere, they go back on a mad search for it. Celestino reminds them at first that they have practice soon, but he and Yuuri both know that if Yuuri doesn’t find the ball before practice starts, they’re simply not going to practice. Their programs will not be any better or worse for them not having gone to practice today, and besides, Vicchan needs them.

 

So they scour the hotel, and in the midst of their search they stumble upon Chris, figuratively speaking, and then Victor Nikiforov stumbles onto them, literally speaking.

 

Yuuri has never talked to Victor Nikiforov before today, not even to exchange a casual greeting or to wish him luck (not that he needs it, but it’s the thought that counts, right?). But they’re quite certain that Victor Nikiforov is usually not that flustered when he talks to people. They’re sure, in fact, of that; Yuuri’s watched more interviews of him than they can count, and they’ve  _ never  _ seen that bright red flush on Victor’s face that they saw today.

 

( _ It’s cute,  _ Yuuri thinks to themself, blushing as they do so. Yuuri has long since given up hope of ever getting over their crush on Victor; they might as well indulge it.) 

 

It just makes no sense; why would Victor be that embarrassed of Yuuri finding him behind that plant. Granted, it’s a ridiculous place to hide, but even so…

 

Logic dictates it’s probably because he and Chris were… in the middle of something, so to speak, but Yuuri knows for a fact that Chris has a boyfriend and that he’s not polyam, so it can’t be that.  _ So what could it be- _

 

_ SQUEAK! _

 

Yuuri jumps back, arms pinwheeling, before they notice the worn blue ball at their feet. “Ha!” They brush themself in relief and pick it up. “There you are!”

 

They pocket it and check the time. Good, they should be just in time for practice if they hurry up. 

 

They head back to the room, absentmindedly squeezing the toy in their pocket. As they enter the elevator, their thoughts turn once more back to Victor and his bright red face.

 

Maybe it’s because he was running from the paparazzi. Maybe he’d run so much that he’d been wiped out, completely red with the effort of running. A little part of Yuuri’s brain scoffs at that, says that Victor Nikiforov is a world class skater, and that it should take a little bit more than that to wipe him out. Yuuri ignores that though, because if they don’t ignore that then the other option is that Victor Nikiforov lik-

 

Nope. Nuh uh. Not going there. Yuuri shakes their head frantically. That way lies madness and heartbreak. And no matter what some of their friends might say when they see their practice schedule, they’re definitely not a glutton for punishment.

 

The elevator opens, and Yuuri walks out to the sight of Vicchan patiently waiting for them by the elevator.

 

“Vicchan!” They quickly scoop him up in their arms, laughing as he licks their face. “Vicchan you were supposed to wait in the room!”

 

“It’s fine Yuuri.” Yuuri looks up to see Mari at the corner, leaning on the wall. She pushes off and walks over to ruffle Yuuri’s hair, ignoring Yuuri’s screech. “Did you really think I’d leave this little guy alone?”

 

“Nee-san,” they whine as they try to fix their messed-up hair. “Was that really necessary?”

 

Mari smiles. “You’re my little brother.”

 

“I really don’t see what that has to do with you messing up my hair!”

 

Mari laughs and ruffles their hair again. “Guess you’re just going to have to deal with it then.”

 

“Hmph.” And that’s when Yuuri’s eyes land on their watch.

 

“Oh God! I’m going to be late!” They run down the stairs, not even daring to wait for the elevator.

 

“Yuuri? Yuuri wait! You still have Vicchan!”

\---

 

Someone’s laughing at Victor from up above, he just knows it. First he woke up and made a fool of himself in front of Katsuki Yuuri, which, you know, was fun, and now Katsuki Yuuri probably thinks Victor is going to steal his dog.

 

It happens like this.

 

Victor’s taking his water break in a relatively quiet corner of the rink. The scratching of skates, interspersed with the satisfying  _ tchok!  _ of a jump well landed and occasional shouts from coaches, fades into the background as he scrolls through Instagram, sipping at his water.

 

It’s at this point he notices a snuffling noise down near his feet. Even then, he might have pushed it away from his mind had he not felt a tugging on his pants.

 

Confused he looks down and is immediately confronted with the second cutest doggo in the world, the first being his own dear Makka. Speaking of Makka, this dog looks  _ so much like her _ , only tinier, and God it just makes his heart melt so  _ much. _

 

“Ah, hello little one!” he coos, offering his hand for the dog to sniff. He immediately licks his fingers, and then he butts into the palm of Victor’s hand, the universal gesture for immediate pets.

 

“Awwwww, you’re so adorable, aren’t you little baby? Aren’t youuuuu~” God above, this dog is so  _ precious _ and _ tiny _ and  _ cute _ and gah. Victor sends up a genuine prayer to the heavens above to thank them for every second they let him stay with this little doggo.

 

He slides off the bench, slowly as not to frighten the small pupper, before gently scooping him into his arms. Instantly, the puppy tries to lick his face, frantic with happiness. Victor can’t help but laugh, going cross-eyed as the little dog licks his nose.

 

“God you’re beautiful. Such a beautiful little baby.” The puppy yaps, and Victor has to kiss his little black nose to keep from crying at his sheer cuteness.

 

“Ah, but your parent is probably looking for you, yes? We should find them…”

 

It’s the logical thing to do, but somehow Victor ends up cuddling the pupper for a few more glorious minutes, thinking that he’ll find the owner in a minute.

 

It is in this position, sprawled on the floor with a sweet little pupper licking his cheek, that Katsuki Yuuri runs in, shouting.

 

“Vicchan!” They yell, and the puppy perks up, yapping, once, twice. The noise catches their attention, and even as Victor freezes in shock, he can’t help but be extremely gay over the way Katsuki’s smile goes all wide and almost wobbly with relief.

 

“Vicch-“ 

 

And then they trip. It’s not a lot, Katsuki could definitely right themself without falling, but right then, Katsuki’s dog (Vicchan?) runs out to meet them. In an attempt to avoid accidentally stepping on him, Katsuki swerves forward, loses their balance, and lands face down in Victor’s lap.

 

The moment stretches out like taffy, awkwardness increasing until the bubble pops and they scramble away from each other, apologies falling off both of their lips.

 

“I’m so sorr-“

 

“Very sorry-“

 

“I didn’t mean to-“

 

“Please forgive me-“

 

_ YIP! _

 

They both stop, mouths clicking shut in unison, and turn to Vicchan. Vicchan, who licks Katsuki’s hand once, twice, thrice, before ambling past them to flop onto Victor’s lap, whining for Victor to scratch his fluffy belly. Which Victor does of course: he might be screaming internally and wanting more than anything to throw himself out the window, but he’s no  _ monster. _

 

“Um, excuse me?”

 

Victor’s head snaps up to Katsuki, who’s currently staring at him bemusedly. “Could I uh, could I have my dog back please?”

 

And Victor should have put the clues together, should have seen it as soon as they ran in, calling for Vicchan, but have mercy on him. He’s had a rough day...

 

“No,” he says, pulling Vicchan closer. 

 

...And now he just made it rougher.  _ Way to go, Vitya.  _

 

“What?”

 

_ You probably made them think you’re stealing their dog.  _ “I-I mean…”

 

“Victor! Get back on the ice!”

 

Ah Yakov. You and your sweet dulcet tones. Still, he’s provided a much needed distraction and it jolts Victor into gear.

 

“Here!” he says, handing Vicchan over to his owner. “Sorry.”

 

“Wait-“

 

Victor doesn’t hear exactly what Katsuki meant to say, nor does he get to tell them that he just wanted to cuddle Vicchan for a few seconds longer.

 

_ It’s fine,  _ he thinks, taking his guards off and pushing onto the ice.  _ It’s fine. _

 

_ (It’s not fine.) _


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yuuri jumps, and Victor falls further than he already has. Plus, new boundaries are broken.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey hey hey! Who’s up for another chapter of Gay Dorkery?
> 
> So a little fact on today’s chapter: Yuuri’s university (and yeah that’s the university they’re listed to go to) doesn’t actually exist! It’s completely made up! Then again, Yuuri is technically made up so...
> 
> As always, please leave a comment or a kudos if you liked it! Enjoy the fic!

Okay, so here’s the deal. Yuuri might be an athlete, but contrary to what Americans may think, they’re not some dumb jock. Now, that doesn’t mean they’re some kind of genius who’ll go on to win the Nobel prize one day, but they’re still smart. Smart enough to get into Kii Gakuen, at least.

 

Anyways, Yuuri is not a dumbass. Which is why they know something’s up with Victor Nikiforov.

 

Today marks both the first and second times Yuuri has talked to Victor, and in both times, he was… weird. Not bad weird, per se. Just… really awkward? Like a turtle or a penguin, if Yuuri really had to define it.

 

Yuuri can deal with that. Logically, they know that the glamorous Victor Nikiforov they see on screen is a persona; no one can live 24/7 like that after all. But what they don’t get is why Victor’s awkwardness seems to be centered around Yuuri.

 

Because it is. Victor doesn’t blush in front of the other skaters, all cute and pretty. He doesn’t trip over his own words, mumbling one second before shouting the next. He doesn’t stare at them with those wide eyes, so blue, especially against the red of his cheeks. Also, he doesn’t almost steal people’s dogs in one breath before shoving them back into their owners’ arms in the next.

 

(Yuuri would steal people’s dogs, though they’d probably feel so bad that they’d return them immediately.)

 

So Yuuri is apparently special. But why?

 

Again, their mind turns unbidden to the thought that maybe, just maybe, Victor likes them. Which, honestly, would make a lot of sense given Victor’s reactions. Still, Yuuri’s not inclined to believe that just yet. This is real life, not a fanfic after all.

 

Also, their break’s up. They sigh and take off their skate guards, already wincing in anticipation of the bruises. Celestino told them to “take it easy, Yuuri” and not to practice any jumps. It’s good advice, and Yuuri is grateful for it, but they’re not going to take it. If they don’t practice their jumps today, and then flub them tomorrow, they’ll devolve into a spiral of regret. Better to flub those jumps now so that they don’t feel bad about potentially bad about flubbing them tomorrow.

 

“Remember Yuuri, no jumps!” Celestino calls from the barrier. Yuuri tenses and sends a silent apology to Celestino before promptly going into their first quad salchow. They don’t hear Celestino sigh, but they know he does.

 

Yuuri sticks the landing, shockingly solid. They huff out a surprised laugh, and turn to do it again, this time with the lead in from their program.

 

It’s a long, slow lead in, and by all accounts, it should be easy.

 

It’s not.

 

Yuuri falls, hips and hands crashing on hard, unforgiving ice, mood plummeting to the floor. Apparently, landing the quad sal twice in a row is too good of a wish to come true.

 

Don’t, Yuuri thinks, refusing to let the self-deprecating thoughts take over, What went wrong?

 

They go back through the lead up, retracing their thoughts, remembering the exact moment their body felt unnatural and ungainly, like a piece of machinery they had to keep in order…

 

...And then of course, they fell.

 

Yuuri sighs, tugging at their gloves harshly. So they just have to stop overthinking. Great. Awesome. Easier said than done.

They pick themself up and try again.

 

And again.

 

And again.

 

Until finally it’s only them zipping across the ice, desperately trying to land another quad sal, despite Celestino’s repeated warnings and coaxings to stop, despite Vicchan’s puppy eyes, despite the incredulous stares of the other skaters, many of whom are just about ready to leave.

 

They must be wondering why I keep falling, Yuuri thinks, burning with shame and exertion. Still, they push themself into another jump. This time, they trip on a patch of uneven ice and stumble into the barrier. They throw their arms out and push off, arms wheeling before, for the third time that day, they fall flat on their ass. Right in front of all the skaters, their coaches, probably some paparazzi, and God.

 

A small yip! from the rink’s entrance reminds them that Vicchan is watching too. Great. Just fantastic.

 

Slowly they start to get up, only to see Victor Nikiforov on the other end of the barrier, staring at them like he’s trying to figure out a puzzle.

 

“U-um-“

 

“Why do you keep falling?”

 

Yuuri blinks. “What?”

 

Victor places his hands on his hips. “Why do you keep falling?”

 

Yuuri opens their mouth, then closes it, stunned. Because first off, Victor Nikiforov is actually talking to them, and second, that he’s so…

 

“Rude,” Yuuri whispers absentmindedly. Then they see Victor’s shocked look, face familiarly flushing. Oh shit. “S-sorry, I just meant-“

 

“Ah n-no, it’s fine,” Victor shakes his head vigorously, “that was um, pretty rude of me-“

 

“Still…” They stand there in an awkward silence, both of them refusing to meet the other’s eyes.

 

Just as Yuuri is about to apologize again, Victor coughs and pushes off the rink barrier. “...You should try a shorter lead up to your salchow,” he mutters, bangs flopping over his face, though it does little to hide his red face. “I-it might help.”

 

“Wait-“ But once again, Victor Nikiforov leaves them behind and bewildered, practically running away from their presence.

 

Well shit.

 

Still, they should probably try his advice; it’s not like Victor could sabotage them anymore than they already sabotage themself.

 

So they take a deep breath, push off the barrier, and jump…

 

\---

 

Victor hears the tchok! of a beautifully landed jump and smiles. And then he keeps hearing it.

 

Tchok! Tchok! Tchok!

 

Did everyone decide to go for another jump practice? Victor groans inwardly. If everyone else is doing it, then he’ll have to do it too, never mind how tired he is. He’s Victor Nikiforov, and if he doesn’t practice with the rest of his fellow skaters, then by tomorrow morning, the headlines will either call him arrogant or shriek that he’s retiring. He’s neither, of course, but does that stop them?

 

He turns back around and abruptly does a double take when he realizes the only one on the ice is…

 

“Yuuri,” he breathes, wide-eyed and gaping.

 

Over and over again, Yuuri jumps and twists beautifully in the air before landing solidly. Every. Single. Time.

 

This is no human, Victor thinks, awed, This is what a god looks like.

 

Victor doesn’t know how long he stands there, drinking in the sight of Yuuri jumping again and again, barely landing on solid ground before their feet fly once more. He feels joy, aching, breathing joy course through his veins, pulsing behind his eyes and almost forcing his heart to come out his throat. Yuuri is beautiful, and now more than ever, Victor can’t look away.

 

Eventually, Yuuri - sorry, Katsuki - stops, and Victor gets jolted back to Earth. He blushes violently and quickly turns to grab his bag and walk out of the rink.

 

“Wait!” He hears Katsuki skate over to the barrier, skates scraping harshly in their hurry. And Victor could walk away, just like he’s done before. He could run, escaping the certain embarrassment he’d face should he stay.

 

He doesn’t. For whatever reason, he doesn’t. Instead he turns around, slowly. “Yes Katsuki?” He winces inwardly at his cold tone. God he sounds like a dick.

 

Katsuki stops, in the middle of taking off their skate guards. “I uh, I didn’t really expect you to stop…”

 

“Oh…”

 

They stand there once again, awkwardly. The empty rink hums around them, a homely buzz that settles into Victor’s bones and teeth.The silence vibrates, tension swirling in the spaces between them as they wait for the other to speak.

 

Just as Victor is about to stumble back, a short farewell at his lips, Yuuri speaks. “Thank you.”

 

Victor licks his lips, eyes darting away to his water bottle, shaken at the intense sincerity in Katsukis eyes. “O-oh, it’s nothing, Katsuki-“

 

“Yuuri.”

 

Victor’s gaze snaps up to meet Katsuki’s. Their eyes are gentle, sure. “What?”

 

They smile, and Victor doesn’t know if he’s going blind or not, but is Katsuki blushing? “Call me Yuuri. Please?”

 

Victor stares. Slowly, Katsuki’s smile drops. “Ah well, you don’t have to-“

 

“Ah s-sorry! I was uh, just…”

 

“Lost in thought?” They prompt.

 

“Something like that, yes. I’d um, I’d be honored,” and of course, this is where Katsuki’s, no Yuuri’s - request really settled in, making him blush. “Really.”

 

They smile again, moon-soft and beautiful. “Yeah?”

 

Victor swallows. “Yeah.”

 

Silence fills the rink again, sweeter now with the release of tension. Slowly, they turn away, both of them packing up to leave the rink.

 

Just before Yuuri leaves, they turn around. Victor is definitely going blind, or at least hallucinating, because there on Yuuri’s pretty cheeks lies the prettiest pink flush Victor has ever seen in his entire life. “Have a nice day, Victor!” they stammer (stammer???), before bowing and rushing out the door.

 

Victor blinks and smiles softly. “See you… Yuuri.”


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yuuri is suffering. Mari is laughing. Chris is the epitome of the song "You've Got A Friend in Me."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey hey! How's it going y'all? Here's the next chapter of Disaster Bois.
> 
> Can I just say I love Chris? He's a good character and I love him. Pure Boi, did not deserve 5th place at the GPF. 
> 
> Like always, if you enjoyed this week's chapter, please leave a comment or a kudos! Thank you and enjoy!
> 
> Next Chapter... Dinner *eyes emoji*.

With practice over, Yuuri scoops Vicchan into their arms and walks out. As soon as they step out of the rink, they’re instantly slapped by a strong, cold gust of wind.

 

Vicchan yaps from where he’s buried inside Yuuri’s jacket, protesting the cold. “Yeah buddy,” Yuuri chuckles, patting his head, “Me too.”

 

Luckily, the hotel is only a block away from the rink, so Yuuri just holds Vicchan tight and power walks as quickly as they can. They make it to the hotel in record time, and Vicchan wriggles out of Yuuri’s hold and onto the ground, bounding towards the fireplace in the lobby.

 

“Vicchan,” Yuuri scolds lightly, bending down to pet their very, very naughty doggo. “You know you’re not supposed to run off like that! Haven’t you learned your lesson from this morning?”

 

“Oh?” Yuuri turns around to see Mari towering over them, arms crossed and mouth twitching. “And what happened this morning?”

 

Yuuri blushes and goes back to petting Vicchan. “Stop acting like you don’t already know,” they mutter, “I  _ know  _ you saw it.”

 

Mari laughs. “Through Twitter yes.” She plops down next to them and stretches. “Soooo… I heard our little Victor met his namesake?”

 

“Oh my god Nee-san.”

 

“What, I can’t ask you some perfectly reasonable questions?”

 

“You’re the absolute  _ worst.” _

 

“You’re dodging my question,” Mari says bluntly, pulling out a pack of cigarettes. “Spit it out, squirt.”

 

Yuuri sighs and leans back. “Vicchan ran out on me as I was talking to Ciao Ciao. I ran inside to catch him, and then I ended up tripping over my own two feet and-“ They cut off, face bursting with red.

 

“And?” Mari nudges, starting to smirk.

 

Yuuri groans and drops their head into their hands. “Promise me you won’t laugh.”

 

“... What happened?”

 

They feel their face burn against their palms as they mutter, “I fell face-first into his lap.”

 

Silence. Then…

 

“BAHAHAHA!”

 

Yuuri groans again. “You promised you wouldn’t laugh!”

 

“T-technically,  _ oh god _ , I didn’t promise a-anything!” And so Yuuri sits there, head in their hands as Mari laughs her head off. Vicchan walks back to them, properly warmed from the fire, and sticks his nose in between Yuuri’s hands. He whines, thinking Yuuri is in distress.

 

Yuuri, of course, can’t let their pup think something’s wrong, so they lower their hands and pick him up, smiling as Vicchan eagerly licks their cheek. Eventually, Mari calms down, with only the occasional snicker or two.

 

“Did it at least feel nice?” She eggs, biting her lips to keep from laughing.

 

Yuuri sighs in resignation. “Yes.”

 

Mari goes off again. Yuuri copes with this by burying their face into Vicchan’s fur.

 

\---

 

God is apparently very,  _ very _ good to the man known as Victor Nikiforov. Why, you may ask?

 

“I didn’t ask,” Chris says, amused, “But go on.”

 

Victor huffs. “Well,” he says, drawing it out, smiling at the way Chris impatiently taps his fingers. He looks around, and once the coast is clear, leans in to say, “They asked me to call them  _ ‘Yuuri’!” _

 

Chris blinks, once, twice, thrice. And then he sighs, face dropping into his hand.

 

“What?” Victor asks, a bit taken aback by Chris’ reaction. “What’s wrong?”

 

“Nothing’s wrong  _ mon ami. _ I’m just-“ Chris cuts off, suddenly smirking.  _ Oh dear.  _

 

“‘Just’?” Victor asks, worried.

 

“... just imagining my best man speech,” Chris drawls, water bottle at his lips, “at your wedding.”

 

Victor blinks. “What-” And then it hits him, and he blushes so hard Chris snorts indelicately.

 

“Christophe,” he whines as Chris laughs.

 

“Sorry,  _ mon ami,”  _ Chris says as he finally calms down, “You’re just too fun to tease.”

 

Victor pouts. “And you’re very rude!”

 

“Guilty as charged.” Chris chuckles. “So Victor, are you still going to dinner?”

 

Victor blinks, confused. “What?”

 

At that, Chris stops fiddling with his water bottle and gives Victor an unimpressed glare. “You forgot, didn’t you?”

 

“Er…”

 

Chris sighs. “I’ll take that as a yes.”

 

“I’m sorry, Chris, it’s just been…”

 

“A long morning, I know.” Chris lets out another sigh. “Well, I’ll forgive you just this once I suppose, seeing as your beloved let you call them by their name today, even though you could’ve done that earlier.”

 

“Chris,” Victor hisses, slapping a hand over Chris’ mouth. He looks around the corridor, desperately hoping not to find Yuuri suddenly standing behind him. Seeing no one there, he steps back with a relieved sigh and glares at Chris. “They’re not my beloved!”

 

“Oh?” Chris raises an eyebrow. “Really?”

 

“Yes,” Victor huffs, resisting the sudden urge to cross his arms. “I just- you know-”

 

“Like him?” Chris offers helpfully, taking a swig from his water bottle. 

 

“...Yes.” And oh would you look at that? He’s  _ blushing. Again.  _ If this keeps up, Victor might as well paint his face red just to save himself some time. 

 

Chris clicks his tongue. “Oh you’ve got it  _ bad, mon ami.” _

 

“I am aware, Chris,” Victor says through gritted teeth.

 

“Temper, temper.” Just then, Chris’ phone dings. He pulls it out, and Victor is treated to the sight of Chris’ face softening. His eyes sparkle, his faces flushes, and he smiles oh so quietly as he reads the message. He looks like the young boy he once was, who Victor could picture running through the Swiss meadows without a care.

 

“It’s Masumi,” Chris says, still smiling. “He says to meet him outside when we’re ready to go to dinner. Speaking of,” Chris looks up at him now, “You never did answer. Are you coming?”

 

“But of course!” Victor says. “Why wouldn’t I?”

 

Chris just keeps looking at him. “All the skaters will be there. You’re alright with that?”

 

Truthfully speaking, Victor isn’t sure. He feels fine now of course, but he hasn’t had time all day to recharge himself. Still, he can’t just say no. If the media catch wind that the skaters of the final had dinner together, and he wasn’t there…

 

Well, let’s just say his PR person would be very,  _ very,  _ busy putting out the fires from all the slander.

 

“I will be,” Victor says, and Chris nods, knowing that’s the best Victor can offer.

 

“Stick close to me and Masumi tonight,” he says, texting his beau that they’re making their way to the front. “If you need to leave early, let one of us know and we’ll head back with you.”

 

Victor almost stumbles in shock. “Chris,” he says, wide-eyed,  “th-thank you, but that’s really not fair to you both…”

 

“Victor.” Chris stops mid-stride and turns. “It’s not a problem,  _ mon ami.”  _ He leans in and places a warm hand on Victor’s shoulder. “After all, what kind of friend would I be if I didn’t look out for you?”

 

“Chris…” Victor says, at a loss for words. “Thank you.”

 

Chris smiles and pats his shoulder. “It’s really no problem. Besides,” and now he smirks, mischievous, “I’d rather have you at the top of your game for this Final. You’re going to need it beat me.”

 

Victor laughs. “Will I now?”

 

Chris just hums. “Watch out, Victor, because I might just melt the ice before you can even skate on it.”

 

“Oh  _ that  _ I have no doubt about,” Victor says, grinning, “I’ve seen your programs this year  _ Monsieur _ Giacometti, and I have to say: they’re your sexiest ones yet!”

 

“High praise from the great Victor Nikiforov,” Chris jokes, bumping shoulders with him, “Mind saying that again so that I can get a recording of it?”

 

“You wish!”


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yuuri prefers nudity. Mari disapproves.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi y’all!
> 
> Sorry for the short chapter today; this week’s been so busy. But! I do have the last half of the chapter in the works. As such, y’all will be getting the dinner tomorrow!
> 
> As always, leave a comment or a kudos of you liked it!

_ Ding! _

 

“Yuuri! You’ve got a text!”

 

“Ah, thanks Nee-san!” Yuuri steps out of the bathroom and scrubs their hair vigorously. “Who’s it from?”

 

Mari checks. “Christophe. That’s the skater Minako-san is obsessed with, right?”

 

“Mhm.” Yuuri holds out a hand. “Thanks Nee-san. I can reply to him.”

 

But Mari takes one look at them and clucks her tongue. “I see five years in America  _ still  _ hasn’t cured you of your nudity fetish.”

 

Yuuri splutters. “It’s not- I don’t have a  _ nudity fetish  _ Nee-san! I’m not even naked!”

 

At that, Mari just looks at them with a deadpan stare. “You have no shirt on and you’re literally wearing a towel around your legs. That’s naked,  _ Yuu-kun.” _

 

Yuuri whines. It’s not dignified, they know, to be standing in the middle of a hotel room, dripping wet and whining like a dog, but Yuuri is hungry and cold and so  _ fucking beyond dignity  _ right now.

 

“Nee-san,” they whine, “Whyyyyy?”

 

“Nope,” Mari says, turning around, “Nuh-uh, no way. Put on some pants Yuuri, and then I can give you your phone. And no,” she says, cutting off Yuuri just as they were about to speak, “boxers don’t count as pants.”

 

Yuuri pouts as she walks out of the room, leaving them phone-less. Then they sigh and head over to their suitcase, where they still have all of their clothes packed in a neat and orderly fashion, and carefully pull out a pair of jeans, boxers, and a dress shirt. If it’s Chris, he’s probably texting about dinner, so Yuuri might as well be ready in case he comes by to pick Yuuri up.

 

They dress in record time, stomach growling like Vicchan when he sees a vacuum cleaner, and walk out of the bedroom to find Mari sitting on the couch thumbing through her phone. She looks up and looks them over with a critical eye. “Good,” she says, before tossing them their phone. “I was just talking to Phichit. Apparently you like to cook breakfast naked.”

 

“Clothes are stupid,” Yuuri mumbles as they pull up Chris’ jaunty little message about joining them for dinner, along with five peach emojis that make Yuuri huff in amusement.

 

“They’re a necessity little sib,” Mari says, turning back to her phone, “Especially when you’re cooking. Please put on an apron at least.”

 

Yuuri snorts. “No way! Aprons are so scratchy-”

 

“If you don’t put on an apron when you’re cooking, I’m telling Kaa-san.”

 

Yuuri stops and turns to look at Mari, nonchalantly typing away on her phone as if she didn’t just betray them. “Nee-san!”

 

“Yuuri.” Mari looks up and glares at them. “Promise me.”

 

Yuuri sighs. “Ok, ok, I’ll put on some pants. Geez.”

 

Mari smiles at their tone, amused, and goes back to her phone. “You heading to dinner?”

 

“Ah, yeah. Chris just texted. Do you want to come?”

 

“Nah,” Mari says, settling back on the couch to reveal a sleeping Vicchan, who keeps nuzzling into her leg, “Someone’s gotta take care of this little guy after all.”

 

“But-”

 

“Yuuri,” Mari gives them a look before sighing. “Go have fun. You’ve worked hard to get where you are right now. Don’t worry about me.”

 

Yuuri picks up their wallet, patting themself down to see if they’ve got everything. “...phone, headphones, lactaid- that should be everything. Sure you don’t want to come? Or want me to stay with you?”

 

Mari raises an eyebrow and then stoically takes a cushion and throws it at them, smiling when Yuuri ducks and laughs. “I told you to go, squirt.  _ Go.” _

 

“Alright, alright,” Yuuri says, still laughing, “I’m off then!” 

 

“Go safely!”


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And now, gentle readers, I am proud to present... Dinner™️.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whoooooooo here’s the first part of the dinner chapter my guys! And yes, I said first part,,, because,,, there will be more,,,
> 
> As always, please leave a comment or a kudos if you liked it!

It’s been fifteen minutes since he, Chris, and Masumi arrived at the dinner and honestly… Victor’s feeling pretty good.

 

Chris was the one who’d organized it, being the social butterfly that he is, and he’d definitely chosen a good place. It was the same place Victor had told him about months ago, when Sochi had been announced as the host for the final. With them being the incorrigible foodies that they are, the conversation ended with Victor raving about this one place he’d eaten at during the Sochi Olympics.

 

The same place all the finalists are sitting in now, albeit a bit stiffly. It’s to be expected: with Crispino’s prickliness and Leroy’s arrogance, it’s no wonder the more mild Bin is starting to edge away from them to join Victor where he sits with Chris and Masumi. 

 

“Mind if I sit here?” Bin asks, gesturing to one of the empty chairs next to him. 

 

“Please go ahead,” Victor says, taking a sip from his drink as Bin sits down. He’s drinking water tonight; he’ll need all his wits about him when Yuuri comes in, and even then, he might still lose a couple of them. Best not to drink tonight.

 

“How are you Bin?” Victor asks. He doesn’t enjoy small talk, but he recognizes that it’s polite. Plus, he really does want to know how Bin is. Though Victor only sees him a couple times a year, he’s a good man and is quite jovial once he gets comfortable.

 

“I am doing well, thank you for asking.” He smiles. “How have you been, Nikiforov?”

 

“Ah, I’m fine, thank you.” Victor nods and they lapse into silence. It feels a bit awkward, and Victor would normally try to keep a conversation going, but with Crispino and Leroy acting up (and Chris egging them on from the corner while Masumi watched with a look of utter adoration), he doesn’t really have the energy to keep trying, and anyways, Bin looks more comfortable not talking. The two of them sip their drinks and watch the hullabaloo unfold, occasionally chuckling when something amusing happens.

 

And it is at this moment that Katsuki Yuuri in all their grace waltzes into the restaurant and steals Victor’s heart once more.

 

“Close your mouth Victor,” Chris whispers. Victor shuts his mouth with an audible click.

 

“Uh, hello,” Yuuri says, ruffling an elegant hand through their hair, which looks deliciously tousled and wet. “Thank you for inviting me.”

 

“But of course!” Chris exclaims, patting the seat next to him, which was also coincidentally right across from Victor.  _ Shit. “ _ Please, take a seat Yuuri.”

 

Victor tries desperately to catch Chris’ eye, but the traitor keeps smiling at Yuuri as they sit down with a blush. Was it really that cold out there, that Yuuri’s blushing so much? Victor doesn’t remember it being  _ that _ cold. Then again, Victor is Russian, so what does he know?

 

Yuuri orders. Immediately after that, they’re pulled into some small talk with Chris and Masumi. Occasionally, Bin speaks up too, making Victor the only one at the table who _still_ _hadn’t spoken to Yuuri._

 

It’s not that he doesn’t want to. It’s that he only knows how to small talk with a few specific questions like “how are you?” and “how’s training going?” and “do you know what you’re doing for the holidays?” But Chris, Masumi, and Bin have already asked those (the respective answers being “Fine, thank you”, “It’s good”, and “I’ll be celebrating with my roommate”), so Victor just sits there, awkwardly sipping at his water while trying to come up with something to say.

 

Then he sees it.

 

_ Ding! _

 

Yuuri jolts and chuckles. “Sorry,” they say, pulling out their phone. Their phone. Which has a poodle cover.

 

Victor has good taste in men.

 

“It must be Phichit.”

 

“Ah, the little hamster,” Chris says, nodding sagely. “And how is he?”

 

“Oh he’s doing great!” Yuuri says, texting with one hand.  _ Holy shit.  _ Victor is so gay. So, so gay.

 

Which is why he can’t be blamed for what he says next.

 

“I like your hand!” 

 

Silence. The whole table stops to look at him, blushing redder than a matador’s cape. He barely suppresses a squeak.  _ Why is he like this? _

 

“I-thank you?” Yuuri says, blinking in confusion, “I uh, I grew it myself?” And then  _ they _ blush, for some odd reason. It must be getting hot in here.

 

“Th-that’s not what I meant to say!” Victor says hurriedly. “I uh, meant to say I like your phone case!”

 

Yuuri blinks again. “I… ok, thank you. I did not grow this myself. So.” They blush harder. Damn, it really must be getting hot in here, if Yuuri’s blushing so much.  _ Is he going to be ok tomorrow?  _ Victor thinks, not realizing he’s been staring at Yuuri for the past few minutes until…

 

“-ictor? Earth to Victor!” Victor jolts.  _ Shit. _

 

“Ah, yes Chris?” 

 

Chris gives him a concerned look. “Are you alright,  _ mon ami?” _

 

Victor laughs nervously. “Ah yes, I’m fine! Sorry for making you worry.” He turns to Yuuri. “Sorry for spacing out on you Yuuri!”

 

“Ah, no it’s fine!” Yuuri's still blushing. Victor decides that if they don’t stop blushing soon, he’s going to petition for Yuuri to go back to the hotel and get some rest. It wouldn’t do for them to get sick the day before the final starts.

 

Their dinner arrives, and Victor finally notices how hungry he is when his stomach grumbles. He winces and hopes no one else noticed that. His eyes flick back to Yuuri, who’s biting their lip as if to keep from smiling. Victor sighs inwardly. Of course Yuuri heard.

 

_ Well, no matter,  _ Victor thinks, picking up his fork.  _ At least I have food- _

 

And that’s when he gets kicked in the side.

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh? I wonder who that could be...


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A surprise guest appears. And Yuuri and Victor have their first truly serious conversation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What’s up y’all?
> 
> Before I say anything else, finals are coming up, so I’m not going to be updating next week! It was a struggle for me to even update this first week, but I didn’t want to put off the fic for too long, so here’s the next chapter!
> 
> As always, if you liked it please leave a comment or a kudos!

“Oi, Victor!”

 

_ Ah, it’s Yura,  _ Victor thinks, massaging his side. Luckily, the kick didn’t hit his ribs, but that didn’t mean that it didn’t  _ hurt. _ Still, he thinks, waving off the table’s concern as they all lean in to check on him, he should be ok to skate tomorrow. “Yura-“

 

“Don’t you dare get drunk! You’re supposed to take me to the rink tomorrow!” 

 

Victor winces. God what a  _ loud _ child. “First, this is water,” he says, raising his glass and an eyebrow at the same time, “second, keep your voice down. People are eating.”

 

Yuri scoffs. “Whatever.” Then he turns to glare at Yuuri. “What are you looking at?”

 

Yuuri blinks. “You’re even ruder in person,” they murmur. 

 

Next to Victor, Bin gasps quietly. Across the table, Chris’ lips twitch as if he’s about to smile, and Masumi whispers, “Oh dear.” 

 

And Yuri? Yuri goes deathly still. “What?” he hisses.

 

“A-ah, sorry, that wasn’t kind of me to say,” Yuuri rubs the back of their neck sheepishly, “Still though, you should at least apologize to Victor-”

 

“Ha!” Yuri smirks. Victor imagines Yuri thinks he looks like one of those cool adults he desperately wants to be. In reality, he just looks more like a smug brat. “And why should I?”

 

Yuuri looks at him incredulously. “You just  _ kicked him!” _

 

“It was just a little kick! It probably didn’t even hurt!”

 

Across the table, Victor sees the look Chris gives him before he says, “That doesn’t make it alright, little Yuri.”

 

“Yes,” Bin pipes up now, “You could have hurt him right before the competition. I hope you don’t intend to bring that attitude into Seniors.”

 

Yuri scoffs, but Victor sees the way his shoulders curl in, stung by the rejection. “Whatever,” he mutters, “sorry.”

 

Victor sighs. Yes, Yuri can be very rude, and yes he  _ really  _ needs to kick his unsavory kicking habit, but he’s only 14. Victor, unfortunately, remembers being 14. It was not a fun age, and he can’t imagine it being any better when an entire nation is praising you as their next champion. 

 

So he slides over and pats the seat next to him. “Eat dinner with us. Perhaps some good food can banish the grumpy little cloud that keeps following you.”

 

“Har har,” Yuri says sarcastically, but he still flops onto the offered seat, subdued. The entire table looks at him as he orders, one part uneasy and one part reassuring, but eventually, they settle into a quiet acceptance, and chatter flows once more.

 

The night finally ends when Masumi looks down at his watch and jolts, exclaiming in shock,

 

“It’s eleven! We should go back.”

 

The whole table agrees, most of them already groaning about the killer morning practice for tomorrow. Victor, for his part, wonders if he can just skip tomorrow’s practice.

 

_ Probably not,  _ he thinks, resigned. Aside from the fact that the tabloids would scream bloody murder should he not show up to practice, especially on home turf, Yuri would probably murder him.

 

Speaking of, the little kitten sways on his feet, probably for want of sleep. It  _ had  _ been a long day for him after all…

 

Just before he can bump into a wall, Victor grabs his arm and pulls him back, letting out a soft “oof!” when Yuri’s full weight hits his side.

 

“Ger’off me,” he slurs, glaring through squinty, sleepy eyes. Victor fights back a coo, knowing that Yuri would cheerfully eviscerate him if he heard. 

 

“No can do Yura!” he beams exaggeratedly, “You’d fall asleep in the middle of the street if I let you go now.” 

 

“Ugh,” Yuri says eloquently, but he doesn’t protest again as Victor practically hauls him over to the door.

 

“Ah, it seems like everyone must’ve headed back already…”

 

“Um, Victor?”

 

Victor turns. There stands Yuuri, fiddling with their gloves.

 

“Do you need help? I’m ah, heading back the same way so…”

 

“I-It’s ok!” Victor stutters, struck by the way the light seems to halo them from behind, softening their face into something so wonderful and gentle. 

 

“Are you sure?” Yuuri asks, finger running over one of their gloves. “You did get kicked in the side earlier, and you’re competing tomorrow…”

 

“Ye-” And then Yuri slumps against him completely, snoring. “...no.”

 

Yuuri bites their lip as if to keep from laughing, and Victor is suddenly bowled over with the want to touch their lips. What would they feel like under his fingers? He wonders, imagining soft skin gliding against the pad of his thumb, imagining lips parting and breaths hitching and-

 

(What would they feel like under his lips?)

 

“- help then?”

 

Victor blinks, realizing that he’d zoned out and that Yuuri’s looking at him expectantly.

 

“Ah,” Victor says, licking his lips nervously, “sure?”

 

It seems to be the correct answer because Yuuri smiles, sun-bright and beautiful, and their eyes go dark and determined. 

 

“Alright! I won’t let you down.”

 

And before Victor can untangle his tongue to say “you’d never let me down”, they swoop in and scoop Yuri into their arms, holding him like they’d hold a baby.

 

Victor has never been more jealous of a 14 year old than he is in that moment. And then the moment passes, and he has to stop himself from cooing over the utter cuteness of the scene.

 

“I-I can help,” he protests weakly, eyes glued to Yuuri’s arms. He wishes Yuuri wasn’t wearing so many layers… so that he could have seen their arms shift…

 

“It’s ok!” Yuuri says, redistributing Yuri’s weight. “I can handle it! I work out a lot.”

 

Victor makes an unholy noise right then and there, and he thanks his lucky stars that Yuuri didn’t hear him as they’d stepped out of the restaurant and into the cold night air. Victor follows them as soon as he can get a grip on himself, resolving to muse over that delicious piece of information later when he was alone. For now…

 

He looks over at Yuuri, who still holds Yuri gently despite shivering like a fragile bird.

 

“L-let’s go then?” they say, face reddening, teeth chattering.

 

Victor nods. “Let’s.”

 

\---

 

The walk back is something out of a fantasy. Yuuri would pinch themself to see if they’re dreaming, but considering that they’re currently carrying a child (who keeps adorably nuzzling into their chest. It’s so cute, Yuuri thinks they might melt.), they reckon it’s best not to. Besides, the night chill is a fine substitute for a reality-affirming pinch.

 

“I’m really sorry.” Yuuri turns to see Victor looking at them sheepishly, face flushed with the cold.

 

“It’s really ok,” Yuuri says, “he’s not that heavy. Besides, you were already injured so…”

 

Victor’s face grows redder.  _ Ah,  _ Yuuri thinks,  _ I shouldn’t have said that!  _ “I-I don’t mean that you’re not strong enough to carry him, i-it’s just-”

 

“No no,” Victor says, licking his lips. “I understand completely. That’s uh, that’s not what I meant.”

 

“Oh?” 

 

“I meant to say I’m sorry for Yura, earlier.”

 

Yuuri looks down at the boy in their arms. “He’s going through a tough time, isn’t he?”

 

Victor nods. “Everyone’s expecting him to be the next Russian champion. It doesn’t excuse him but…”

 

Yuuri clicks their tongue in sympathy. It definitely explains a lot about Plisetsky’s attitude today. Yuuri remembers being his age, with every hormone going haywire, causing them to growl and lash out and once hit Nishigori over the head with a binder. Not their finest moment. Yuuri thinks, wincing. And Yuuri hadn’t even had the pressure of being the country’s new star. Poor Plisetsky. 

 

Still though, it was pretty weird of him to kick Victor like that. Unless…

 

“Victor?”

 

“Hm?”

 

“Has Plisetsky ever kicked you before today?”

 

Victor hums. “He’s tried, but I’ve always dodged. It’s no big deal.”

 

Yuuri splutters. “Wait, he always tries to kick you?!”

 

“Not often!” Victor insists, “and like I said, he never actually manages to land a hit.”

 

“Except now!”

 

“Ah yes, except now.”

 

“Victor,” Yuuri says, voice lowering with worry, “you know you don’t have to put up with that, right? You can tell him to stop.”

 

And Victor just… smiles. Yuuri doesn’t know what they expected, but it definitely wasn’t that sympathetic smile that made them feel as if Victor were the one comforting them.

 

“I know,” Victor says, confident yet soothing, “and I usually do tell him off a bit playfully. I didn’t want to fuss over something so trivial. Though,” his face becomes serious, “I should talk to him about this. Probably after the competition when he’s not too stressed out. He’s gone too far.”

 

Yuuri nods. “Like you said, it’s understandable, but…”

 

“But.” And then Victor sighs, a great plume of breath escaping from his mouth like dragon fire. “Ah, there are so many things to do tomorrow…”

 

Yuuri blinks. Just now… Victor sounded really bitter, like a fruit gone bad.

 

_ Maybe it’s because he’s tired,  _ they think, looking ahead for the hotel. “Well, luckily the hotel is just up ahead. Hang in there, Victor!”

 

And with that, they heft Plisetsky higher up into their arms and march the rest of the way to the hotel, with Victor following close behind.

 

With their gaze focused on the door of the hotel, they don’t see the way Victor’s eyes widen when Yuuri asks him to just “hang in there”, don’t see the way his mouth falls into a sudden gasp, don’t see the way his stomach fills to the point of bursting before he sighs, wistful and yearning, as Yuuri marches ahead.

 

Yuuri doesn’t notice the effect they have on Victor.

 

(Surprisingly, or perhaps, unsurprisingly, Victor is totally fine with this.)

 


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There are two types of disasters in the world: Gay Disasters and Actual Disasters. Both happen in this chapter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey hey hey I'm back! Conquered finals and all and here I am!
> 
> Sorry for not updating yesterday; this week's just been one whole writing fest what with college apps and the other fics I posted earlier in the week (I'm not telling you to check them out, but y'all totally should check them out.) Next week I'll be back to the regular schedule with an update every Saturday.
> 
> Until then, enjoy this chapter, and leave a comment or a kudos if you can!
> 
> See y'all in the New Year!

The next morning dawns cold and clear. Emphasis on the cold.

 

“Ugh,” Yuuri says as his face makes contact with the freezing air in the room. 

 

“Up and at em squirt, you’ve got a big day today.”

 

“Ugh,” Yuuri says again, this time with more feeling as he tugs the sheets over his head. He’s just settled back into the warmth of his bed when Mari yanks the sheets off to expose him to the cold like a waiter pulling off the cover of a cooked lobster.

 

“Nee-chan,” he whines, grasping at his stolen sheets, “let me sleep!”

 

“No can do squirt,” Mari says, amused. She drops the sheets in the corner and starts to poke at his exposed leg. “Besides, Vicchan wants to be walked before you skate today.”

 

Across the room, Yuuri hears said doggo “yip!” excitedly. That, plus the fact that Mari’s pokes were getting awfully close to the ticklish spot on his calf, makes him sit up with a groan. He sighs and swings his legs over the side of the bed, not totally ready to take on the day, but knowing that he has to anyways. First things first though…

 

He cracks his back loudly, smirking as he sees Mari wincing in horror, before rolling his head to crack his neck as well, not once taking his eyes off of hers.

 

“You’re a monster,” she states, “a true devil.”

 

Yuuri just hums and stands up. “Takes one to know one,” he sasses back, fixing his bracelet so that it lands on the blue side. He feels more than sees Mari’s eyes drop to it as he heads to the bathroom.

 

“He/him today then?” Yuuri hums affirmatively before heading in to get ready for the day.

 

(If he takes a cat nap or two while still in the bathroom, well. Only he and Mari will know.)

 

“Alright!” he says, clipping Vicchan’s leash to his collar. “I’m off!”

 

“Come back safely!” Mari says as they rush out. Yuuri’s finally ready to take on the day. It’s a clear morning, Vicchan is by his side, and he hasn’t embarrassed himself in front of anyone yet.

 

_ This will be a good day,  _ he thinks, turning the corner. Naturally, that’s when he runs into Victor. 

 

\---

 

Victor’s just on his way to breakfast when he gets swept off his feet and lands in a heap on the floor with Katsuki Yuuri lying on top of him.

 

Yuuri mumbles something in Japanese, but Victor doesn’t hear, too busy trying to fight off his natural reaction to having his crush on top of him, which, you know, is turning into a blushing, stammering mess.

 

He thinks he does pretty good with the stammering part, he can’t stammer if he’s not  _ talking _ after all. The blushing part? Not so much. 

 

_ That’s ok,  _ he reasons,  _ that’s just something I’ll have to improve on. _

 

Next to them, Yuuri’s dog ( _ Vicchan,  _ his mind supplies) yips, and Yuuri scrambles off of him so fast Victor would be offended. Would be, except…

 

“I’m so sorry!” Yuuri babbles, apologies falling from their lips like rain from the sky. “I-I just, I didn’t see you there and-and-“

 

And something in Victor settles. Something that was churning in him for the past few days, made him a mess whenever he so much as thought of Yuuri, finally goes quiet as he sees Yuuri, flustered, blushing Yuuri, almost knock over their dog with their wild hand movements. It lays still as he sees Yuuri turn to their dog with a panicked expression and scoop him up to anxiously check him over and over, all the while apologizing to both Victor and Vicchan. It vanishes when Yuuri looks up, wild-eyed and glasses skewed so adorably sideways that Victor has to hold back a coo.

 

_ Oh,  _ he thinks,  _ they’re not a god after all. _

 

And Victor isn’t turned off at all by that, because the imperfect humanity that now stares at him with pleading eyes is somehow better than the god-like status he’d placed Yuuri- no,  _ Katsuki-  _ on. 

 

So he smiles and says, “It’s fine! I promise!”

 

Yuuri blushes harder. “I’m really, really sorry! I just-“

 

“You were on your way to breakfast right?” Victor stands up, brushing off his knees. He’s about to offer a hand when Yuuri shoots to their feet, dog in tow. Victor lets his hand fall back as Yuuri puts their dog down, noting their blue bracelet. Or, well,  _ his  _ blue bracelet.

 

“I uh, was actually going to walk Vicchan? But!” he exclaims, hands tightening on the leash, “Breakfast would be good!”

 

“Yeah?” Victor asks, wincing at the stupidity of his reply. Apparently, not even realizing that his crush is a human being like him can get rid of his utter inability to act normally around him.  _ Dammit. _

 

“Y-yeah.” Yuuri looks up at him with a small, nervous smile, and God help Victor, because he is so,  _ so  _ gone for this man. He just wants to kiss that smile right off of him-

 

“Arf!” Vicchan tugs on his pant leg to get Victor’s attention.

 

“Ah, hello again little one!” Victor leans down to hide his suddenly red face, grateful for the distraction. “Are you having a good morning?”

 

“Arf!”

 

Victor laughs, so utterly charmed by this tiny little dog who looks so much like his Makka.  _ Four more days,  _ he thinks wistfully as he pets Vicchan,  _ four more days until I can see her. _

 

“Um…”

 

Victor looks up. Yuuri towers above him, fidgeting slightly. “Sh-should we go to breakfast then?”

 

“Ah!” Victor rises to his feet, smiling sheepishly “yes, sorry-“

 

“Don’t be.” And then Yuuri smiles, and Victor is undone once more. God, he needs to get a handle on himself before he does something truly stupid, like walk into a wall at the sight of Yuuri’s smile. 

 

(If he did that, Chris would never let him live it down. Yuri would never let him live it down. Hell,  _ Makka  _ would probably never let him live it down. He resolves to be as vigilant as possible.)

 

He realizes Yuuri is already walking towards the elevator, Vicchan in tow. Shaking his head to clear his gay thoughts, he walks quickly, catching up with them as they reach the elevator.

 

_ Oh no,  _ he thinks,  _ here comes the awkward part _ .

 

The awkward part being, of course, waiting for the elevator. Victor has two options: A) either make awkward small talk or B) wait for Yuuri to speak, and have a potentially really awkward silence when he doesn’t.

 

Luckily, the elevator comes quickly. They step in, both reaching for the button for the first floor. 

 

“Let me,” Victor says..

 

Yuuri jostles his glasses upwards with his free hand. “I can do it,” he insists, brown eyes determined like he’s about to take the ice.

 

“You’re holding your dog though.” Slowly, Victor makes his way over to the control panel. Yuuri, however, notices this and immediately blocks him, not budging even when Victor pouts.

 

“Vicchan is on a leash,” he says, shielding the panel as Victor tries to reach around him. “It’s easy enough to hold a leash.”

 

“Ah but,”  _ There! _ With a speed Victor wouldn’t have thought possible, he reaches around Yuuri to press the button without further ado, “I’m closer.”

 

The doors close, and the elevator starts to make its way down. Yuuri huffs and steps closer. “Technically I was closer. You,” he says, eyes sparkling, “were over there! On my other side!”

 

“I still pressed the button, didn’t I?” Victor can feel his heart racing, his palms buzzing, his breath picking up. He recognizes this feeling. It’s the feeling he got when he landed a quad flip for the first time, when he plays with Makkachin near the seashore, when he loses himself in a new city. It’s light on his tongue and rushing through his veins, making his head spin and making him feel like he’s flying. It’s  _ fun,  _ is what it is. This conversation, where Yuuri is voluntarily closer to him than ever before, where he looks at Victor with those beautiful brown eyes, challenging him with his gaze and stance and words is  _ fun. _

 

“Next time,” Yuuri whispers, “I’m pressing the button.”

 

Victor, stunned by the idea that there’d be a next time, can only say one thing. “Yuuri…”

 

The lights flicker. Victor looks up, alarmed.

 

“That’s weird,” Yuuri whispers, “Do you think everything is-“

 

The elevator jerks. They’re thrown every which way as the elevator shudders, once, twice, before finally stopping completely with a terrible groan.

 

“What,” Victor says, shaking slightly, “What was that?”

 

Yuuri doesn’t answer him. He jabs at the open door button repeatedly, growing more frantic and desperate until he suddenly slumps. “It’s not working,” he whispers. He looks up at Victor, eyes glazed over with panic. “The elevator’s not working.”

 

Oh  _ shit. _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> lmao I'm not sorry


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two boys sittin’ in an elevator. Less than five feet apart cause they’re both gay. Oh and there’s a doggo.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello hello hello! Welcome back to another installment of Disaster Bois. This chapter, we see what happens when our boys are stuck in an elevator. Oh whatever shall they do~
> 
> Please leave a comment or a kudos if you enjoyed!

Yuuri has clearly said this on multiple occasions, but the universe just  _ hates _ him.

 

“Don’t be silly Yuuri!” Phichit had said one time when Yuuri had turned over and groaned at the ceiling, entire body throbbing and aching from the falls he’d suffered at practice. “The universe has no soul! It can’t hate you!”

 

Yuuri would just like to call Phichit right now and tell him,  _ You were wrong Phichit-kun, you were so wrong- _

 

And yet he can’t. Why, you ask?

 

“There’s no service in here,” Victor says, tapping at his screen. Yuuri joins him, fingers fumbling uselessly as he tries to get a signal. Nothing. Zip. Zero. Zilch.

 

_ Shit. _

 

Yuuri’s panicking. He can feel it tugging at him, trying to pull him under into a sea of  _ oh god oh god oh God-  _

 

He shakes his head furiously. No, he cannot fall apart. Not here. Not now.

 

“Yuuri?” Yuuri snaps his gaze up to where Victor stares at him, concerned.

 

Yuuri clears his throat. “Yes?” he asks, hoping his voice doesn’t sound as shaky as he feels.

 

Victor’s face twists into a concerned frown, but he just says, “I think there’s a button to call for help. Maybe we should…?”

 

Yuuri nods. Yes, good, they have a plan. Yuuri looks at the control panel which, apart from the numbers, is written entirely in Russian. “Um…”

 

“Ah!” Victor exclaims, face apologetic, “Sorry! I forgot they were in Russian. Here, just let me-” Yuuri freezes as Victor moves in to press the button. He swallows his tongue to keep from stuttering out something stupid and creepy like how  _ warm  _ Victor is and how  _ good  _ he smells-

 

The intercom beeps and crackles to life, and a pleasant voice echoes down to where they stand. It’s in Russian, so Victor answers while Yuuri stands, still frozen to where Victor is well, pinning him to the control panel.

 

Yuuri shivers as Victor speaks near his ear. God, his voice…

 

And just like that, the conversation ends, and the intercom crackles off.

“Good news!” Victor says, making Yuuri flinch at the volume. 

 

“Um, Victor…?”

 

“Hm?” Then, as if scalded, Victor jumps back, leaving Yuuri’s back feeling strangely cold and lonely. “I-I’m so sorry! I didn’t notice I swear-”

 

“I-It’s ok,” Yuuri says, turning around. He knows he’s blushing badly, so he asks, “What uh, what did they say?”

 

“Oh! Right. They said that they know what’s going on, so that’s the good news.”

 

Yuuri looks up, dread starting to swirl in his stomach at Victor’s word choice. “‘The good news’? So then there’s bad news too?”

 

“Ah,” Victor winces, “Yes. It will take them some time for them to get us out.”

 

Yuuri swallows. “H-how long?”

 

“...an hour. Maybe two hours.”

 

_ Oh.  _ Yuuri opens his mouth, and then he closes it. “I guess there goes my morning run?” he jokes, inwardly cringing.  _ God, why did I say that? _

 

The corners of Victor’s mouth lift tentatively. “I suppose,” he says, before sitting down with a sigh. “Well, there’s really nothing for us to do at this point so…”

 

He pats the floor next to him, clearly inviting Yuuri to sit next to him. On one hand, the idea is certainly appealing. This is the closest he’s ever been to Victor, he might as well take advantage of it.

 

On the other hand, Yuuri considers sitting next to Victor for the next couple of hours, feeling his warmth, catching whiffs of his cologne, seeing that perfect face so close to him… Nope. There’s no way he’d survive that. So he ignores Victor’s invitation and sits against the opposite, legs folded close to his body. 

 

He pulls out his phone to play a puzzle game for the next hour, resolutely not looking in Victor’s direction.  _ This is for the best,  _ he thinks as he pets Vicchan, waiting for his game to load.

 

Victor sighs, and Yuuri thinks he might hear some disappointment in it, but he doesn’t look up.

 

_ This is for the best. _

 

\---

 

Victor suppresses a sigh for the fiftieth time.

 

This is honestly some kind of torture. Victor knows Yuuri doesn’t like him like that, but he’d hoped at least he’d be able to  _ talk  _ with him. Obviously, Victor overestimated how much Yuuri truly likes him, because he’s sitting as far away from Victor as he can, ignoring him. Even worse, he’s sitting with one of the cutest dogs Victor’s ever seen, and Victor doubts Yuuri would let him lean over to pet him.

 

He sighs and unfolds a leg, grimacing at how his bones crack and protest from being forced into a position for so long. They’re so loud in the small quiet of the elevator, loud enough that Yuuri looks up from their phone for the first time since he sat down.

 

Victor freezes, holds his breath, like one inhale could scare Yuuri away. He doesn’t even  _ dare  _ to blink, worried that the miniscule flutter of an eyelash could somehow end the moment where Yuuri looks at him, concern on his lovely face.

 

“Are you okay?” he asks. “That sounded like it hurt.”

 

“Ah,” Victor says, brain churning uselessly for a response, “Yes, yes I’m fine, thank you.”

 

Yuuri blinks, and for a minute, he looks so skeptical Victor wants to laugh. He also wants to cry at how cute Yuuri looks like that. 

 

“If you’re sure,” Yuuri says, about to turn back to his phone. And Victor can’t let him do that.

 

“Wait!” Victor says, the word sharp and unforgiving in the small space.  _ Agh,  _ Victor thinks as Yuuri looks up, eyes wide with concern. 

 

“What is it?” Yuuri asks, putting his phone down. Victor can’t even be happy about that because now Yuuri’s looking at him like Victor’s about to herald the apocalypse.

 

“I-uh-” Victor looks around, trying to find a good conversation topic. His gaze lands on Vicchan and- “Tell me about your dog!”

 

Yuuri blinks again. “Vicchan? What? Why?”

 

“I just want to know more about him,” Victor says, smiling nervously. He hopes Yuuri doesn’t see that he’s nervous; he’s supposed to look calm and collected. “Like, where did you get him?”

 

Yuuri shrinks away. His cheeks are hidden, but Victor thinks he might be blushing. “Japan.”

 

“Oh, that’s neat.”  _ Neat, _ Victor laments,  _ I said ‘neat’. God what kind of teenager am I? _

 

Yuuri hums, petting his dog. For a moment, it seems like he’s done talking. Then he says,

 

“Actually, I got him because of you.”

 

Victor blinks. “What?”

 

Yuuri looks up and  _ oh.  _ He looks so  _ soft,  _ a sweet flush painting his face, a bashful look in his eyes. “Um, back then I was your fan, so when I saw you in an interview with Makkachin, I uh,” he laughs and looks away, making Victor feel as if there’s an angry fist that’s slowly squeezing his heart. “Oh  _ God,  _ this is embarrassing,” Yuuri mutters.

 

Victor leans in. “Tell me more,” he asks as quiet as he can. He can feel himself on the edge, waiting for Yuuri to say more, to tell Victor more about him. He wants,  _ badly, _ but he can’t push Yuuri. So he waits, aching and holding his breath.

 

Yuuri looks back up. He must see something encouraging in Victor’s face because he says, “I begged my parents to get me a dog like Makka. And they did,” Yuuri looks down to where Vicchan lies, sleeping like a little baby. He smiles and scratches him behind his ear. “I’ve had him since I was 13.”

 

And while Victor is still reeling from this development, Yuuri lands the true crippling blow. “H-His name’s actually Victor. He uh, I named him after you.”

 

Victor has many fans. Some are content to cheer on him from the sidelines, while others clamor for the chance to meet him in public. Some merely leave comments on his Instagram posts, while others write entire manifestos on his skating. Some scream his name from the crowds up in the stadium seats while others whisper about him as he passes in the hallway.

 

None of them, literally none of them, have ever given him the devotion that Yuuri’d given him.

 

_ Oh,  _ Victor thinks. It’s all he can think, really. It feels like there’s a revelation on the tip of his tongue, an epiphany that’s just waiting to be released. 

 

“Victor?” Yuuri asks, sounding nervous. “Oh no, I’ve freaked you out, haven’t I? I’m sorry I don’t know why I said all that-”

 

“Yuuri,” Victor says, cutting through Yuuri’s ramble. He licks his lips, suddenly anxious. “You said you  _ were  _ my fan.”

 

“Yes,” Yuuri says, wary and a bit confused.

 

“Does that,” Victor licks his lips again, absentmindedly making a mental note that he needs more lip balm, “Does that mean you aren’t anymore?”

 

Yuuri blinks, once, twice, then he smiles, amused. “What do you think, Victor?”

 

Victor’s about to ask (demand) for a proper answer, but that’s when the elevator starts moving again.

 

“Ah!” Yuuri says, jumping to his feet. “They must have fixed it.”

 

“Oh,” Victor says, swallowing his disappointment. “That’s good.”

 

Yuuri looks over at him. “Hey,” he says, hands fidgeting with Vicchan’s leash, “Do you uh, maybe want to get dinner? Tonight? With me?”

 

Victor has died and gone to heaven. That’s the only explanation. Floors pass by before he can finally find his tongue. “Yes,” he says, sounding strangled. He clears his throat. “I would love to.”

 

Yuuri beams, so sunny and bright that Victor wants to weep.  _ God,  _ why is this man so gorgeous?

 

“It’s a date then,” Yuuri says, just as the elevator doors open.

  
Oh, the universe must really love Victor.


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yuri is a little shit, but then again, so is Victor.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, sorry about the delay! It was my bday last week, and the leadup to it was so hectic that I decided to post this week instead of last week. Because of the delay however, y’all get one chapter today, and then another one tomorrow! Thanks so much for all your support!
> 
> Also??? Have y’all??? Heard about the movie???
> 
> Green costume green costume green costu-

“Let’s go, Yura,” Victor says as he picks up his bag, “If we don’t leave now, we’ll be late.”

 

Yuri scowls. “Says the person who was late to practice today.”

 

“I told you,” Victor says, sighing, “The elevator broke down and I got stuck in it.”

 

Yuri scoffs but picks up his bag nonetheless. “Whatever.”

 

Victor shakes his head as Yuri stomps out the door.  _ Ah, teenagers… _

 

He follows him out and locks the door behind him. “Ready?” he says, turning to see Yuri’s irritated face. Yuri always tries to look like he’s either unaffected or angry with the world, and honestly? It doesn’t work as well as he wants it to; he’s really too young to pull it off, so he just ends up looking like a disgruntled little kitten.

 

“Ugh, I’ve  _ been  _ ready, let’s  _ go.” _ Victor stifles a snort.  _ Sure,  _ he thinks,  _ it’s not as if I was the one telling you we had to leave a few minutes ago. _

 

They make their way to the elevator. After what Victor experienced today, he gives it a suspicious side eye, but when the doors open, he walks in, trying to look as confident as ever. 

 

As the elevator goes down, Victor looks over to Yuri. “Are you going to try a quad today?”

 

Yuri scoffs. “As if Yakov would even let me! Besides,” his eyes shift up to meet Victor’s, “didn’t you say you’d only choreograph for me if I didn’t do any quads? Are you trying to make me go back on my word, old man?”

 

Victor smiles. “Just checking,” he says, silently relieved that Yuri wouldn’t be attempting quads today. It’s not that he  _ can’t  _ do them, because in all honesty, Yuri can do some of the quads better than some of the seniors can. It’d just be dangerous: Yuri hadn’t practiced a quad for months now, and if he did one now, when he was out of practice… It wouldn’t end well. 

 

But the way Yuri scoffs at him again and turns to his phone suggests that he has no intention of pulling off a quad during the competition, so Victor relaxes. Yuri’s actions also suggest that he’s done talking, so Victor turns to his phone, smiling when he sees a text from Chris. Apparently, Chris is wondering if they can meet up for dinner again tonight.

 

Victor is about to say yes when he remembers: he’s going on a  _ date.  _ With  _ Katsuki Yuuri.  _

 

How could he forget that, he thinks as he replies back with a “no”. True, Yuuri hadn’t texted him all day after he gave Victor his number- 

 

(“I should uh, I should give you my number,” he said, all pretty and blushing and _ugh_ _why was he so beautiful?_

 

Victor’s pretty sure his face could’ve fried an egg, but he handed over his phone. “Right! For the- for the date.”

 

Yuuri peered up at him and smiled sweetly. “Right,” he said, typing his number and name into the phone, before handing it off to Victor, who was still trying to get his lungs to work. “Send me a text?”

 

And of course, Victor, like the gay fool he was, sent him a text right then and there. 

 

“Oh ok,” Yuuri laughed, “that uh, that works too.”

And then they parted, wishing each other luck for the competition. And if Victor had changed Yuuri’s contact name to something with a bit more heart emojis, well. It’s not like Yuuri was going to know!)

 

-so yes, while Yuuri hadn’t texted him all day, it should still have been impossible for Victor to forget.

 

Although, Victor thinks, as he starts to get nervous about tonight, maybe it was better to have forgotten after all.

 

Because here’s the thing. This is the second time Victor’s going on a date,  _ ever.  _ The first time had been back when he was 17: a cute rinkmate had asked him to lunch, and then, when Victor had arrived to the diner, the boy had canceled on him, saying that he forgot that he had to do something else that time. Victor had ghosted the boy afterwards until he got the hint, and after that, his skating career really took off, so his days were spent in skating, skating,  _ skating,  _ until there was little time left for anything else. Technically, he could have gone on a date, but then there was Makka, and when it came to Makka and a first date with someone else, is it really so surprising that Victor would choose Makka everytime.

 

Yet no one had ever asked Victor on a date during a competition before, and he's certainly never been asked by a fellow competitor. Normally Victor would have said no: there’s no logical way it would end well if even the smallest thing went wrong, and there’s no saying how it would affect their performances. And yet…

 

Something about Yuuri, Katsuki Yuuri, makes Victor want to be a bit reckless. Maybe it’s the way he jumps quads over and over and over, like no normal person should be able to do. Maybe it’s the way he always talks, earnest and warm. Maybe it’s the way his eyes seem to show his very soul, every shade of brown that could be found reflecting his emotions and giving them to the world. Victor just wants to know him better, aching in a way he hasn’t ached in so long.

 

All this to say that, despite Victor normally being a logic-driven person, he still accepted Yuuri’s offer for a date. And now he’s here in the elevator, panicking silently as he looks up “how to act on your first date” on his phone. Of course, this is the moment Yuri chooses to lean over to peek at his phone.

 

“You’re going on a date?” he says, shocked. “During a competition?!”

 

Victor sighs.  _ Busted.  _ “Yes Yura,” he says, just as the elevator  _ pings!  _ open.

 

“Oh my god,” Yuri says with rising glee, “Yakov’s going to  _ kill  _ you!”

 

Victor sighs again but smiles. “He can certainly try. Wait,” he says, turning to see Yuri tapping away at his phone, “are you  _ telling  _ him right  _ now?” _

 

“Of course,” Yuri says smugly, “I can’t wait to see the look on his face when he realizes you’re going on a  _ date  _ during the  _ Grand Prix Final.” _

 

“You do realize you won’t be able to see his face since you’re texting him, right?”

 

Yuri stops typing and frowns. “Fuck, I hate it when you’re right.”

 

“Yura,” Victor says, stifling an exhausted laugh, “you know you’re not supposed to curse in public.”

 

“Fuck that.”

 

Well, maybe Victor should have expected that. Still, it doesn’t mean he’s going to put up with hearing it. He hikes his bag higher and walks quickly, leaving Yuri to jog behind him to catch up.

 

“Slow down, you asshole!”

 

“Consider it your warm up, Yura!”

 

“Fuck you!”

 

Eventually, they reach the rink. Victor looks at the time and sighs in relief. “Good, we’re right on time.”

 

“Of course we are,” Yuri says, finally catching up. He breathes harshly into the cold winter air. “For an old man, you walk pretty quickly.”

 

Aaaaand that’s Victor’s cue to enter the building and find Yakov. “Come on, we need to find our coach.”

 

“Oka- hey wait! You never told me who you were going out with!”

 

“Hm?” Victor says as he walks faster. 

 

“Oh  _ fuck you-“ _

 

“Language!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Victor: making my way downtown, walking fast-
> 
> Yuri: wait who are you dating-
> 
> Victor: walking faster-


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And now it’s time for Katsuki Siblings Shenanigans! Featuring cracked knuckles, annoying little brothers, and tender heartfelt moments in spite of murderou intentions.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here’s the other chapter I promised y’all! Have at it, and I’ll see you next week!

_ In, _

 

_ Out. _

 

Yuuri exhales noisily. The past day has been so hectic that he almost forgot to be nervous, What with the dinner and asking Victor on a  _ date  _ and giving Victor his  _ number _ -

 

-Yuuri remembers how beautiful Victor looked, face adorned with a pretty pink blush as Yuuri somehow got his name and number into Victor’s phone.  _ Pretty,  _ Yuuri thought at the time, only breaking out of his daze when Victor sent him a text so that he could save Victor’s number in his phone. The memory and the thrill of knowing he has  _ Victor Nikiforov’s  _ number is enough to make him feel light all of a sudden, before his mind whispers,

 

_ What if he doesn’t want to go on a date with you after how badly you do today- _

 

Nope. Nuh uh. He shoves the thought away, aggressively taking a gulp of water from his bottle to avoid thinking about it. That way lies a spiral he knows he won’t be able to get out of.

 

Still, as he puts down his water bottle, there’s nothing in his way to distract him. So he falls back into his usual patterns of trying to breathe normally right before he’s about to skate, this time at his very first Grand Prix Final.

 

_ Oh God,  _ he thinks, almost horrified,  _ I’m about to skate at my first Grand Prix Final. _

 

He shoves his hands into his pockets, fumbling for his earbuds. He needs to block out the world, needs to just focus on himself.

 

Well, that’s a lie. He needs to  _ not _ focus on himself, as that might make him spiral, but it’s better than spiraling because everyone else is so  _ loud  _ and so  _ good _ and  _ oh God what is he doing here- _

 

“Yuuri?” 

 

Yuuri looks up, gasping. Mari stands in front of him, concern written on her face. “What are you doing here?” he croaks, wincing at how dry his throat feels.

 

“Your coach got me a pass.” Mari taps the bench next to him. “Mind if I sit?”

 

Yuuri just scoots over and watches as Mari sits down. For a moment, she’s silent, eyes on the hallway in front of her. Then she sighs and tips her head back. “ _ Kaa- _ san called earlier. Wanted to wish you luck.”

 

“Oh.” Yuuri stops bouncing his leg. “Tell her I said thank you.”

 

Mari nods, once. Then she smiles. “Minako-san hijacked the phone from her.”

 

“Oh God,” Yuuri groans. “What did she say?”

 

She looks over at him, amusement clear in her eyes. “She said to mind your free leg. Apparently it’s sloppy.”

 

Yuuri blinks at her in disbelief. “That’s it?” he asks, incredulous.

 

Mari’s lips twitch like she’s holding back a laugh. “Well, she was going to say more, but  _ Tou- _ san got the phone then. I could hear  _ Kaa- _ san scolding her in the background though.”

 

Yuuri thinks about his short mother gently scolding Minako-sensei with a chiding voice and a wag of her fingers and giggles. “Some things never change, huh?”

 

Mari smiles and hums affirmatively. They fall into a comfortable silence, watching people pass by the bench, eyes absently following their rushed movements. 

 

“Better?” Mari asks after a few minutes.

 

“Mhm.”

 

Yuuri looks over to her. “Thanks.”

 

“No problem squirt.” Mari looks at her phone and says casually, “Shouldn’t you be with your coach?”

 

“Celestino usually lets me pace around the compound,” Yuuri says, standing up. He should keep moving, keep his body loose and relaxed. He rolls his head, sighing in relief when his neck cracks softly.

 

When he’s done, he looks back at Mari, who’s moved all the way to the other end of the bench, as far from Yuuri as possible.

 

“I’ll never get over you doing that,” she comments, twitching as Yuuri cracks his knuckles with a smirk.

 

“It’s not that bad,” Yuuri says, starting to stretch for real. “I heard somewhere that the cracking sound happens because of gas bubbles collapsing inside joints, so it’s not like I’m cracking my actual bones.”

 

“Nope, that’s still creepy. Keep your cracking away from me, please.”

 

Yuuri looks her straight in the eye and cracks his knuckles one by one. He grins when Mari shudders in horror and glares at him. 

 

“You know little brother,” she says pleasantly, as if she didn’t want to murder Yuuri right then, “if it wasn’t for the fact you have to skate soon, I would trip you right here and now.”

 

Yuuri bites his lip to keep from laughing. “Thank God for skating then.” Then he cracks his thumb.

 

Just as he’s about to crack his other thumb and potentially get mauled by his sister, Celestino shows up.

 

“Yuuri!” he says, walking over to them quickly. “Ah, I see your sister found you. Everything ok?”

 

“Wonderful,” Yuuri says, only a bit sarcastic as his nerves start to peek out again. This time though, they’re definitely more manageable, and he pushes them to the back of his mind. “Is it time?”

 

Celestino nods. “Just about, so you should probably come to the rink-side soon. You too,” he adds, looking at Mari.

 

Mari nods and stands up. “Of course. Thank you again for the pass.”

 

“It’s nothing!” Celestino laughs, waving an insistent hand. “Now, are you ready?”

 

Yuuri is not ready, not really. He hasn’t been “ready” since he found out he was going to the Grand Prix Final. All throughout this whole week, he hasn’t been ready, feeling like he had to be better to truly reach the standards of people who usually qualify for the Grand Prix Final.

 

So no, he’s not ready now. But…

 

He looks at Mari, his sister, who’s farther from home than she’s ever been in her entire life. Who brought Vicchan, who sat with him even as he cracked his knuckles in her face. He looks at Celestino, who somehow got a pass for his sister last-minute, even though he should have been doing other things. 

 

These people, and others back at home are with him, by his side. They’ll still be there even if he doesn’t feel ready.

 

So Yuuri nods. “Let’s go.”


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yuuri skates.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey hey y’all it’s ya girl. 
> 
> Here’s the next chapter of disaster bois, featuring a person who’s never watched figure skating before trying to describe figure skating. Yuuri’s program in this is inspired by Daisuke Takahashi’s “Rock n’ Roll Medley” from the 2012-2013 season. The only adjustment I did was move the triple axel to the beginning and the quad toe loop to the end of the program because narrative and scoring reasons.
> 
> With that out of the way, here you go! Leave a comment or a kudos if you liked it!

**** “Taking the ice is Yuuri Katsuki, representing Japan-“

Yuuri tunes it all out, choosing instead to focus on the  _ shhk-shhk _ of his skates underneath him. The ice is smooth, and he glides across it effortlessly, barely hearing the roar of the crowd over him. 

He skates one last lap and then finally comes to a stop at center ice, letting his hands fall to his sides. Above him, he hears the crowd fall silent and he tilts his chin higher, waiting for the music to start.

The first notes blare out, and Yuuri  _ moves. _

This short program is not Yuuri’s usual style, or well, seeing as Celestino picks his music, not usually what Celestino picks for him. Usually, his programs are set to long, sweeping pieces that are grand and melancholy by measures. Yuuri always tries to pour his emotions into those, all the while trying not to mess up any jumps (he fails a lot, but is that really surprising?).

All this to say that “Rock n’ Roll Medley” is not his usual cup of tea. However…

Yuuri leads up into the first jump, the triple axel, and lands it with a good, hearty  _ tchok! _ The momentum carries into the next few elements and Yuuri gets lost in the program. His arms feel loose, the good kind of loose, the one that makes him want to swing and sway to the beat of the music. He lets go, lets his body move with the music like it wants to.

Of course, Yuuri being Yuuri, he completely botches the landing on his quad toe. He gets up, ears burning at the sound of the crowd’s audible hiss of sympathy. Luckily, he gets back into the routine, and before he knows it, the program’s over. There he stands, pointing to the ceiling, right hip throbbing with a dull ache.  _ Oof,  _ he thinks, dazed by the cheers,  _ that’s gonna bruise. _

Somehow, he skates his way over to the barrier, wincing at how his costume, now wet with ice, tugs and pulls at the forming bruise over his hip. 

“Yuuri!” Celestino booms, clapping Yuuri on the shoulder gently. “That was a great performance!”

“Could be better,” Yuuri mutters. He’s never in the clearest mindset after a skate, but even he can tell right now that there are a lot of things he needs to refine.

“Ah Yuuri,” Celestino tuts, leading Yuuri over to the kiss and cry, “Now is not the time for those things! Now’s the time to celebrate the good things. Like your score!”

Celestino points up at the screen. Yuuri blinks before leaning in to squint. 

“83… point 47?”  _ No,  _ he thinks, shocked,  _ there must have been a miscount… _

“No miscount,” Celestino chuckles, making Yuuri realize that he must have spoken out loud. “That’s your score, Yuuri.”

Yuuri turns to him, wide-eyed. “But- that’s-”

“-A new personal best for Skater Yuuri Katsuki!”

“Oh my  _ God-” _

Celestino smiles and pats his arm. “Smile, Yuuri! You just got a personal best.”

Yuuri turns to the camera in front of him and manages to twist his face into a smile. It’s a bit difficult, considering that his mind is currently screaming  _ what the fuck  _ on a loop but he manages.

Minutes pass by in a daze as Yuuri smiles for the cameras in the kiss and cry, mind a screaming entity, before Celestino taps his shoulder and gestures for him to follow. 

“We need to go now,” he says, motioning to the ice. “The next skater is warming up.”

Yuuri takes a look at the ice. Sure enough, there’s a dark-colored blob making rounds on the ice to the sound of applause. Yuuri nods and stands up, following Celestino out of the kiss and cry.

Next up is dealing with the media. Yuuri sighs inwardly, trying to muster up enthusiasm. All he wants to do at this point is find his glasses, go up to the stands, and watch Victor skate. 

Speaking of Victor…

“Yuuri!” Yuuri jumps, not having heard Victor coming up behind him.

“Victor,” Yuuri says, biting down on his lip to prevent a goofy smile, “hey-”

“Yuuri, what  _ was  _ that? Your step sequence was beautiful, absolutely beautiful, as was your triple axel and triple toe-triple lutz combo. Your-”

“Yuuri!” Yuuri whirls around to see Celestino standing behind him. “Sorry Nikiforov, but Yuuri has to go talk to the press now. Perhaps you two can continue your conversation later?”

At this point, Yuuri’s head swirls with all the different directions he’s being pulled in. He shakes his head violently, falling back into competition mode. “Right yes, of course,” he says to Celestino, “I’ll be right there!”

Then he turns back to Victor and says, “Thank you for your feedback.” He bows automatically, then remembers he technically doesn’t have to and comes back up, blushing. “I uh, I’ll see you later?”

Victor’s mouth hangs open, and his eyes are wide, no doubt in shock over Yuuri’s bow. After a moment, he seems to shake out of it and his mouth clamps shut with a click. “R-right,” he says, nodding jerkily. He licks his lips. “It’s a date.”

And even though Yuuri said the exact same thing only a few hours earlier, he blushes and finally lets out the grin he just  _ knows  _ makes him look like a fool. Then again, it’s only fitting: he’s always been a fool for Victor after all.

“It’s a date,” he repeats, grinning harder when Victor blushes so hard his ears go red.  _ God,  _ if that doesn’t make Yuuri want to kiss them.

“Yuuri!” 

But no, he’s spent too long now; there’ll be time for that later, hopefully. So Yuuri just says, “Good luck, Victor!” and turns away, jogging to catch up with Celestino.

(Later, when he’s looking through YouTube for a skating routine, he finds a video titled, “Yuuri Katsuki X Victor Nikiforov: DATE???). Intrigued, and a little embarrassed, he opens it, expecting it to contain footage of their first date. 

He’s shocked to see footage of this exact moment. He smiles and just watches it, sighing over obvious they both are. He smiles even harder when he sees Victor’s face when he walks away on the screen. Victor’s eyes light up, and his face lifts into that beautiful heart-shaped grin.) 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> lol y’all have NO idea how close the end came to be full of angst. putting up a second part to the series so you see how it *could* have happened.


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yakov is worried, and Yuuri is late.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, Ace here!
> 
> First off, I’m so sorry for putting off this story for so long! I was sick one week and the next I had All State. I’m better now tho, and I’m back at it again with shy bois.
> 
> Please leave a comment or a kudos if you liked it!

“Victor!”

 

Victor jolts, finally noticing the wall he was about to walk into. “Ah, thank you Yakov!” he says, and walks away swiftly, trying to escape the lecture that’s sure to be coming.

 

“What was that?!” Victor sighs as Yakov’s voice carries through the hallway, making other skaters perk up and try to listen along.

 

“Not here, Yakov,” he mutters, gesturing for him to follow Victor to a more secluded area, which in this case turns out to be a quiet little divot in the hallway that’s somehow hidden from prying eyes.

 

He turns around. “Ask away,” he says, even though he really doesn’t want Yakov to.

 

Yakov opens his mouth before closing it with a frown. Then he sighs. “Do you know what you’re doing?” he asks simply.

 

Victor blinks. “What?”

 

“I’m not going to scold you for going on a date with a competitor Vitya,” Yakov says, “even though you should know better. You _do_ know better, so I’m going to ask again. Do you know what you’re doing? Will you be able to push through if it ends badly?”

 

“Y-Yakov,” Victor laughs, suddenly nervous, “What brought this on? It’s just dinner-”

 

“And yet,” Yakov cuts in, “you almost walked into a wall. In front of _cameras,_ no less. That’s not like you Vitya.”

 

Victor resists the urge to look away from Yakov even as he feels his masks being stripped away to expose him as the lonely, lovestruck person he truly is. “It’s… not,” Victor admits, “You’re right, but… I think I can make this work.”

 

Yakov snorts. “Oh, that I have no doubt of. You’re more stubborn than a mule. But that also makes you dedicated, sometimes too fast. That, and you’ve had a crush on Katsuki for a while. I am worried that you won’t be able to recover if they break your heart.”

 

Victor pulls back, feeling the truth in the words punch him in the gut. “I’ll keep skating,” he mutters harshly, finally looking away, “you don’t have to worry about that.”

 

“Stupid boy,” Yakov says, clicking his tongue, “It’s _not_ about skating. It’s about _you.”_

 

 _What?_ Victor is about ask Yakov to explain, but an official interrupts them. “Excuse me, Coach Feltsman, Victor Konstantinovich? It’s almost time for your short program. If you would please come this way…”

 

“Ah, thank you,” Victor says, immediately snapping back into professional politeness. “We’ll be there in a moment.”

 

The official blinks and apparently decides not to press the issue as he says, “Of course. Please come soon.”

 

“Yes, of course,” Victor says. As the official walks away, he turns back to Yakov, who looks at him in vague concern. “I have to go skate, but we can talk later?”

 

Yakov sighs. “Of course we will. Do you have your head on straight for the short at least?”

 

Victor bites back a joke on how his head is _never_ on straight and opts instead to say, “Yes. I’m fine.”

 

“Good,” Yakov says, nodding in approval, “Then what are you waiting for?”

 

Victor feels a slow smile crawl over his face at Yakov’s words. He turns around and walks toward the rink, knowing that Yakov is right behind him. With each step he takes, his thoughts fall away, and his mind sharpens to rival the skates on his feet. By the time he reaches rinkside and slips off his jacket, he feels like clear, fresh ice in the morning. He inhales; the cheers of crowd fade to uncover his heartbeat, slow and steady. He exhales; the cheers come back in slowly, having lost most of their clarity.

 

 _Perfect,_ he thinks, stepping onto the ice. As he circles the rink, serenity falls over him, and through the calm he hears…

 

“Representing Russia is Victor Nikiforov…”

 

\---

 

As soon as Yuuri gets back to his hotel room, he slips off his shoes and flops face down onto the bed, letting loose a long groan.

 

He hears Mari laugh. “Damn Yuuri,” she says, chuckling, “What happened?”

 

Vicchan, who’d been sleeping on Yuuri’s pillow, pads over to him and starts licking his ear with a small whine. Yuuri huffs and turns to face Vicchan, who yips in delight and licks his nose. “I’m not leaving this bed ever again.”

 

“Oh?” Mari says, and Yuuri can just hear the shit-eating grin on her face, “But what about your date with Victor?”

 

Yuuri jolts and turns around slowly. “Who told you about that?!”

 

“Celestino,” Mari says simply. She gets off the bed and ruffles his hair, making him yelp and glare up at her. “What time do you have to leave?”

 

“Oh it’s-” Yuuri cuts himself off. His eyes widen as he scrambles for his phone. _“Shit!”_

 

“Yuuri?”

 

Yuuri barely hears her as he frantically searches through his texts. “We didn’t set a time,” he hisses, _“Shit.”_

 

“You could always set a time now?” Mari offers. “It’s not like he’s going to walk in right no-”

 

_Knock-Knock-Knock._

 

They all pause and look to the door. Vicchan yips, wriggling in place as he tries to answer the person at the door. “...Maybe it’s not him,” Mari says.

 

“Yeah,” Yuuri whispers, eyes still set on the foreboding white door. “Maybe it’s room service-”

 

There’s another knock. _“Hello?”_ The voice is muffled, but there’s no mistaking it. _“Is this Yuuri’s room? It’s uh, it’s Victor?”_

 

 _Well_ **_fuck._ **

 

Yuuri finally turns away from the door to look at Mari. He sighs. “You just _had_ to jinx us, didn’t you?”

 

Mari faces him, scowling. “Oh come on!” she says in a fierce whisper. “You could have come up with a time later you know-“

 

 _“Yuuri?”_ Victor says, knocking again. _“Are you in there?”_

 

Silence. The minutes tick by as Yuuri sits there on the bed, frozen. Then…

 

Yuuri hears a large sigh and a subdued _“alright then”_ float in from the door. He can just make out the sound of footsteps, getting fainter and fainter as they move away.

 

Yuuri’s eyes widen. _Shit!_

 

Yuuri jumps out of bed, nearly hitting his hip on the bedside table. Behind him, Vicchan yaps and Mari cries for him to be careful, but he barely hears them as he runs over to the door and yanks it open to see Victor standing in the middle of the hallway in a blue button-up with a small bouquet of daffodils in his hands.

 

“Yuuri?” he says, blinking in confusion. “What-“

 

“I’m so sorry!” Yuuri blurts out, bowing suddenly. “I-I got caught up in press and didn’t have time to change and then you were here and-“

 

“Yuuri!” Victor cuts in. He steps forward, hands slightly behind his back. “It’s ok, really.”

 

“I’m so sorry-“

 

“No no,” Victor shakes his head. “Please, don’t apologize. You didn’t mean to. Besides,” he says, laughing a bit self-consciously, “it’s not like we set a time to meet.”

 

“Still…” Yuuri says, biting his lip, “I could’ve answered when you knocked on the door.”

 

“Ah well,” Victor shrugs. “It’s no matter now. Really.” Plastic crinkles in Victor’s hand, and his eyes widen. “Ah right!” He thrusts the bouquet in front of him. “This uh, this is for you!”

 

Yuuri blinks but takes the bouquet. “Daffodils?” he murmurs, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.

 

“They mean new beginnings,” Victor says quietly, almost like he’s being shy.

 

Yuuri looks up. Victor is peeking at him from under his bangs, face pink and sweet and so _pretty_ that Yuuri just wants to kiss him.

 

Instead, he hides his face in the flowers, the soft scent of the daffodils grounding him. “They’re wonderful,” he whispers, “thank you.”

 

Victor’s eyes widen and his blush darkens. “You’re welcome,” he says, smiling sweetly.

 

 _Oh God,_ Yuuri thinks as Victor looks at him with those star-like eyes, _I really,_ **_really_ ** _want to kiss him._

 

But he can’t. He shouldn’t, really. This is their first date, and even though the very idea of that makes his blood sing and his heart dance, it doesn’t mean that the relationship will last. What if he kisses Victor now, and he ends up not liking Yuuri? Yuuri doesn’t know how he’d be able to then go on and see Victor at competitions, over and over, without ever being reminded of that kiss.

 

So he coughs lightly and says, “We should um, we should go. To dinner.”

 

Victor blinks and looks.., almost disappointed? _That can’t be right._ Of course, he then smiles brightly and says “Right!” in the most chipper voice possible, so Yuuri has no clue what’s going on. “Do you want to get changed first? Not,” Victor says, almost frantic, “not that you don’t look handsome right now. But uh…”

 

 _Track suits are not first date material._ “I understand,” Yuuri says, biting back a smile at how _adorable_ Victor looks, “I’ll just uh, put these in some water and change.” He turns to the door, which had closed behind him when he’d stepped forward a while ago. “Do you want to wait inside?” he asks as he tries to find his key card.

 

“You don’t mind?” Victor sounds a bit surprised, Yuuri thinks absently. He finds the card with a small “aha!” and brings it up to open the door.

 

“Not at all,” Yuuri insists, opening the door and holding it for Victor, “Please come in.”

 

Victor steps in and is immediately greeted by one yipping Vicchan and one confused Mari.

 

“Yuuri?” she asks, putting Vicchan down when he wriggles too much to be safe. “What’s going on?”

 

“Ah, _Nee-_ san,” Yuuri says, switching to Japanese, “do you mind if Victor stays in here while I change?”

 

Mari looks over to where Victor is picking up Vicchan, who licks his face in greeting, making him laugh and baby-talk at him in Russian. Then she shrugs. “I don’t mind,” she says, “besides, I’d like to know more about the guy you’re going on a date with.”

 

 _“Nee-_ san,” Yuuri groans, “Don’t scare him off!”

 

“I won’t, I won’t,” Mari says, laughing, “Still, it’s not like we’re going to sit here in silence, you know.”

 

“Um, Yuuri?”

 

Yuuri turns back to Victor, who’s looking at him in confusion. “Could you introduce us please? I’m not sure I’ve met her before…”

 

“Ah right!” Yuuri says, blushing at his own incompetence. “Right uh, Victor, this is Mari, my big sister. Mari, this is Victor.”

 

“Pleased to meet you,” Victor says in halting Japanese, bowing. Yuuri’s eyes widen, and he can’t help the giddy smile that bursts over his face at the thought of Victor learning to do that. _It might not be for you,_ his mind says, _it might’ve been because he had to meet Japanese officials or sponsors._ Which is… fair. Still, the thought does nothing to dim the smile on his face or quell the sudden sparklers in his stomach.

 

Mari, who had apparently also been shocked, finally shakes out of her daze. She smiles and says “Same to you,” in English.

 

Then she says to Yuuri in Japanese, “I like him.”

 

“Ah good,” Yuuri says. He switches back to English “Are um, are both of you okay sitting here while I go…” he gestures to the bathroom.

 

“Both of us?” Victor says, sounding shocked. “Yuuri! You forgot this cutie right here!” He picks up Vicchan and looks at Yuuri with a look of mock outrage. “How could you?!”

 

Yuuri bites his lip to keep his giggles in. “You’re right,” he says in the most somber voice he can manage. “I’m so sorry Vicchan, will you ever forgive me?”

 

Vicchan yips happily and wriggles out of Victor’s hands to go place a small paw on Yuuri’s shoe, tail wagging faster than a motor. Yuuri finally laughs and leans down to pet him and kiss him on his tiny nose. “Aw, thanks buddy. Go back to Victor or _Nee-_ san now, I gotta go change.”

 

Vicchan bounds back to Mari, who pets him gently. Yuuri coos at the scene and then turns to look at Victor. “I’m um, I’ll just take a minute. I’ll be back soon!”

 

“Ok!” Victor says, sitting down in one of the chairs.

 

Plastic crinkles in Yuuri’s hand, reminding him of the daffodils. “Oh! Right.” He gets the biggest cup he can find in the kitchen, fills it with water, and places the daffodils in there as gently as he can. He smiles and leans in to get a last whiff of the scent before scurrying off to his suitcase to find some clothes and then to bathroom. The last thing he sees before he closes the door is Mari and Victor both petting Vicchan with Victor asking Mari some questions about him.

 

He smiles and closes the door.


End file.
